Beginner

Davinci Resolve 16: Crash Course for Beginners | Basics Tutorial

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In this complete Davinci Resolve CRASH COURSE for beginners, I’ll teach you all the basics you need to know to start creating your first video!  I’ve compiled all the tips I found when I was first getting started.  See how to Import, Edit, Color Grade, Edit Audio, and Export your first project and more!  

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Lightroom Classic CC Preferences Tutorial

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Just getting started in Lightroom and trying to set up your PREFERENCES?  In this video, I’ll go through the preferences menu to help you get set up for success in Lightroom CC.  I’ll share my settings that help me to work organized, smoothly and efficiently every day in Lightroom.

If you have questions about any settings in the preferences menu, leave a comment below!

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Be sure to SUBSCRIBE and click the Notification BELL to keep up as we learn Lightroom together!

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Lightroom CC - QUICK Overview of the Interface Tutorial

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If you’re new to Adobe Lightroom CC and want a super quick overview of the Lightroom Classic CC interface, this video is for you!  In less than 3 minutes, I’ll give you a fast rundown of the program.

Be sure to SUBSCRIBE and click the Notification BELL to keep up as we learn Lightroom together!

FOLLOW ME:
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My Photography Gear
My MAIN Camera:  https://amzn.to/2Ok1jee  
MAIN Camera Battery Grip:  https://amzn.to/2N4QSH1
My BACKUP Camera:  https://amzn.to/2OcELMv
My Favorite Lens:  https://amzn.to/2N4mWKR
The Widest Lens I have:  https://amzn.to/2IjzZr9
Wides Aperture Lens I have:  https://amzn.to/2N3dEyX
Variable ND Filter:  https://amzn.to/2pKMnrC
Good Kit Lens for Beginners: https://amzn.to/2OgpSsK
My Flash: https://amzn.to/2IkykS6  
Rogue Flash Bender Soft Box:  https://amzn.to/2N5duXF
GoPro Hero 5 Black: https://amzn.to/2N3oK71
GoPro Dual Battery Charger + Battery:  https://amzn.to/2IjGTgb  
Wacom Intuos Pro Pen and Touch Small Tablet:  https://amzn.to/2Ij7qtW
My Camera Bag: https://amzn.to/2MYctkl
Awesome Tripod:  https://amzn.to/2IkP3VA
Sensor Cleaning Kit: https://amzn.to/2Iid9QD  

Audio Gear
My Mic for Desktop Recording:  https://amzn.to/2R1kMir 
Lav Mic, Rode RodeLink FM Wireless Filmmaker System:  https://amzn.to/2zx5ECK 

Software I Use
Adobe Creative Cloud Photography Plan: https://amzn.to/2R1UUmI
ScreenFlow: https://amzn.to/2zwRQbl
iMovie 
Davinci Resolve

Computer Equipment
Macbook Pro:  https://amzn.to/2OlAerr  (I have a 2015, but this is the new version)
Drobo 5Dt:  https://amzn.to/2N5LQtC  
Datacolor Spyder5PRO:  https://amzn.to/2R1Vhh6
Canon PIXMA Pro-100 Printer:    https://amzn.to/2zvL0T

How To Enlarge a Low Resolution Image for Print, Another Way!

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Has there ever been a time when you had a low resolution image you want to print?  Maybe it is a screenshot of something or an image where the quality just wasn't there?  In this tutorial I'll show you one way you can modify an image and enlarge it to be printed as an 8x12.  It only takes a few minutes and a couple of steps.

Video Summary

This particular image was at a resolution of 72 ppi and approximately 5.5" x  8.3".  The goal was to modify this image so it could be printed as an 8x10.   When preparing images for print, it’s important to keep in mind that your file resolution should be a minimum of 240 ppi to get a high quality print.  In this case I wanted to use 300 ppi.  I’ll show you how you can easily upscale an image using Photoshop. 

Step 1

Open your image, then go to the ‘Image’ menu and select Image Size.

Step 2

In the ‘Width’ and ‘Height’ boxes, input the size you would like your image to be.  In this case, I used 8” x 12”. 

Step 3

Look at the resolution box next.  It’s likely you will see something around 72 Pixels/Inch.  Change that to be 300 Pixels/Inch.

Step 4

Next, make sure the box next to ‘Resample’ is checked.  Select ‘Preserve Details (enlargement)’ from the pull down menu.

Step 5

Use the ‘Reduce Noise’ slider if you feel your image needs noise reduction.

Step 6

Click ‘OK’.

Your Finished!  Print it out and see how it looks!

If you have any questions, please leave a comment below!  Be sure to check out the rest of my YouTube Channel and website!  

Thanks!

How to Prepare a Scanned Image for Print

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Have you ever scanned in an image you wanted to reproduce only to find that the scan does not look as good as you had hoped?  In this tutorial I’ll show you the process I used to scan in an image that was in an old calendar, then retouch and repair the image before sending it off to be printed.  One of the challenges with this image in particular was that after I scanned it in and brought it into Adobe Photoshop, I was able to see the small colored dots of ink that were used to print the image.  I’ll show you how I was able to remove the ink dots using smart filters in Photoshop 2014.  After adjusting the image in Photoshop, I will show you the final printed result. 

If you have any questions, please leave a comment below!  Be sure to check out the rest of my YouTube channel along with my website:  http://www.jasonyadlovski.com 

Please subscribe if you enjoy the videos and are learning something!

Thanks for watching!

Retouching Eyes - Part 3

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This is Part 3 in a series of eye retouching tutorials. Using Photoshop, I'll show you another technique that can be used to enhance eyes in a photograph. For Retouching Eyes - Part 1 click HERE and for Part 2 click HERE.  If you have any questions please leave a comment below.  If you enjoy my youtube videos, consider subscribing.  Thank you!

Twilight Sky - Before/After

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Have you ever seen the sky have brilliant blues, purples, pinks, oranges and reds?  Many times when we try to photograph these beautiful skies, the camera does not capture the colors as vividly as we see them with our own eyes.  In this tutorial using Adobe Lightroom, I’ll show you how you can bring out the amazing colors that you know were there.  Having your camera set to save images in RAW format instead of JPG will help preserve the colors and detail that you will be able to enhance in Lightroom.

One thing to note here is that these settings are what worked for this image and what I thought looked best.  When I took the photograph I had an idea in my mind what I wanted the final result to be.  The key thing to remember here is that you need to experiment with the sliders and settings to find what you like and what works for your image.  With this in mind, lets get started!

Step 1

The first thing to do with this image is to drop the temperature and raise the tint.  This will help make the blue look more blue and the hint of pink look more pink.

Step 2

Increase the exposure to .75 and the contrast to 75.  I want the trees to be a black silhouette against the gradient in the sky.

Step 3

Basic Panel Settings

Basic Panel Settings

Adjust the Highlights, Shadows, Whites, and Blacks.  The image to the right shows the settings I used.  These settings will vary based on your image and the effect your going for.

Step 4

Increase Clarity.  I like to use Clarity on landscape shots.  I think it helps bring out details and increase the contrast a bit.  Be sure not to over do it with the clarity, unless of course that is the look you’re going for.   Increase the saturation.  I typically use vibrance when there are people in the image and saturation for landscape images. 

Step 5

Under ToneCurve I changed the curve to a medium contrast.  I want to make sure the trees are black against the sky.

Step 6

In the HSL panel, I used the target adjustment tool to modify the saturation of the purples.  This enhances the pink and purple colors of the sky.

Step 7

Add sharpening.  The sharpening settings I used are Amount: 86, Radius: 1.4, Detail: 52, and Masking: 64.  Adjust the masking as you need.  If you hold down the Opt. or Alt. key while clicking on the masking slider, you will see a preview of the areas that are being sharpened in white. 

Hold Opt. or Alt. while adjusting the Masking slider to see the areas that will be sharpened in white.

Step 8

Under Lens Corrections, I chose Remove Chromatic Aberrations to take care of some purple fringing around the trees.

Step 9

Add a Post-Crop Vignette.  I used an amount of 38 and changed the feather to 100.

The image is complete!  To see a before/after of your image, make sure you are in the Develop Module in Lightroom and press the ‘\’ key.  This will toggle between before and after images. 

If you have any questions or would like to learn other techniques in Lightroom, please leave a comment below.  Thanks for watching and reading this tutorial!

Before Image (left) and After Image (right).

Before Image (left) and After Image (right).

Retouching Eyes - Part 1

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In this tutorial series I’ll show you several techniques that can be used to retouch and enhance the eyes in a photograph.  In part one you will see a quick way using Adobe Lightroom to make the eyes in your photos ‘pop’ and draw the viewers attention to them.  Using simple techniques,   it is easy to take your images to the next level.  Enjoy!

Before/After - Dandelion in a Bubble

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In this tutorial I’ll show you my post processing workflow for this dandelion in a bubble image.   I used Adobe Lightroom and Perfect Effects 8 for the post processing of this image.  In my opinion Perfect Effects is a great tool to use in combination with Lightroom. 

The image was taken with my Canon 60D using the 18-135 f3.5-5.6 IS lens at 120mm.  Camera settings in manual mode were, 1/250 sec at f8.0, ISO 400.  It was a cloudy overcast morning which created a nice diffuse light.

Step 1

Bring the image into Adobe Lightroom.

Step 2

Step 2 - Basic Panel Settings In Lightroom

Step 2 - Basic Panel Settings In Lightroom

Make some global adjustments in Lightroom.  Here I adjusted the exposure, highlights, shadows, whites and blacks.  I did not modify the contrast because I knew I wanted to use the dynamic contrast filter in Perfect Effects.  With these adjustments complete, I brought the image over into Perfect Effects by going to File – Plug-in Extras – Perfect Effects 8.

Step 3

Step 3 - Dynamic Contrast settings in Perfect Effects

Step 3 - Dynamic Contrast settings in Perfect Effects

Once the image is in Perfect Effects I started adding Filter Layers.  First, I added a Dynamic Contrast - Natural layer.  Under the Filter Options and Detail, I adjusted the settings as follows: Small = 30, Medium = 20, Large = 0.

Step 4

Add a new layer to the Filter Stack.  Choose Color Enhancer – Green Enhancer.  Using the mask tool, place a mask on top of the yellow dandelion so the effect is not applied to the flower.  The green is now a little to much, so reduce the layer opacity to 50%.

Step 5

Add a new layer to the Filter Stack.  Choose Sunshine – Glow.  Reduce the layer opacity to 20%.  Copy the layer mask from the previous ‘Color Enhancer’  layer by using Ctrl + click to drag the mask to the current layer. 

Step 6

Add a new layer to the Filter Stack.  Choose Sharpening – Amazing Detail Finder.      Using the masking bush, mask out the background and foreground of the image.  To see where you are masking, press Ctrl + M.  Since these areas are out of focus to begin with, they do not need to be sharpened. 

Step 7

Add a new layer to the Filter Stack.  Choose Vignette – Big Softy.  Reduce the layer opacity to 65%.

Step 8

Click Apply to apply the filters and bring the image back into Lightroom.

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Thanks for watching!  

Final Image

How to Enlarge a Low-Res Image for Print

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Has there ever been a time when you had a low resolution image you want to print?  Maybe a screenshot of something or an image where the quality just wasn't there?  In this tutorial I'll show you one way you can modify an image and enlarge it to be printed as an 8x10.  It only takes a few minutes and a couple of steps.  One quick note, I did not create the original image used in this tutorial - I'm not sure who did, but I have seen the image used in various places on the web.

Video Summary

This particular image was at a resolution of 72 ppi and approximately 5.5" x 6.5".  Our goal was to modify this image so it could be printed as an 8x10.   When preparing images for print, it’s important to keep in mind that your file resolution should be a minimum of 240 ppi to get a high quality print.  In this case I wanted to use 300 ppi. 

Step 1

Open image.  Unlock background layer by double clicking on the LOCK icon on the layer.  Resize the image by going to Image >Image Size. Then change the resolution to 300.  Click OK

Step 2

Change canvas size to 8x10 by going to Image > Canvas Size.  Use 8 for the width and 10 for the height.  Click OK.

Step 3

Using Free Transform (cmd + T), resize the image so it is as large as it can be without cutting off any of the edges.  Notice we have a small area on the bottom and side that we will need to fill in.

Step 4

Extract the text.  Select the Magic Wand tool.  Change sample size to 3 by 3, and tolarance to 12.  Select a black portion of the text.  Right click and select ‘Similar’.  If there are more pixels to be selected within the text, select Similar again.  Right click in the selection and select Make Work Path.  For the tolerance, use 2.0.  The text and graphics will be extracted as a path and can be found in the Paths panel.

Step 5

Blur the background layer to remove pixilation.  Go to Filter > Blur > Gaussian Blur.  Adjust the blur to your liking.  I used a 4 pixel blur.

Step 6

Fill in the missing areas on the bottom and right hand side.  Use the Marquee tool to select the blank areas.  Be sure to overlap the surrounding pixels so Photoshop knows what to fill the area in with.  After making the selection press Shift + Delete to bring up the Fill dialog box.  Choose Content-Aware and click OK.  Blend further if necessary.

Step 7

Add text back on top of image.  Create a new blank layer labeled Text.  Go into the Paths panel and highlight the work path that was created.  Right click and select Fill Path.  Use Black as the color for fill.

Step 8

Add stroke around text.  First setup your brush settings – use a hard edge brush and a width of 8 pixels in this case. Right click on the text Path again and select Stroke.  Use the Brush as the tool to stroke the path with.

Step 9

Increase Contrast.  Create a new curves adjustment layer.  Select preset called ‘Medium Contrast’. 

Step 10

Combine all layers and Sharpen.  Combine all layers using Shift + Option + CMD + E.  To sharpen the image go to Filter > Sharpen > Smart Sharpen.  Use an amount of 200 and leave the rest of the settings as they are.  You’re Done!

Step 11

Send out for print, the image is complete!  The image is now 8x10 with a resolution of 300 ppi and will make a great print.

Thank you for watching! 

Adobe Photoshop CC - Custom Trees using Pattern Fill

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Adobe Photoshop CC has a way to create a wide variety of 3D trees and shrubs that can be inserted into your images!  This is an awesome new feature that is customizable and easy to use.  As a Landscape Architect, I frequently use Photoshop as a visualization tool to help clients see the potential of their outdoor space.  I have found that many clients cannot fully understand a design simply by looking at an overhead plan view of their site.  Great photographs of the existing site combined with Photoshop compositing really help to get the design idea and intent across to clients.

Accessing and using the custom 3D trees in Photoshop is simple.  First, open the image you will be working on.  Next, create a new blank layer above the background layer.  Make the new blank layer active.  To add a new 3D tree onto our blank layer we need to ‘Fill’ the layer by pressing Shift + Delete.  There are several options here on how we can Fill the layer.  In the Fill dialog box, under the Contents section, choose ‘Pattern’.  The Blending section can remain as is.  Toggle on (check mark) ‘Scripted Pattern’.  Then click the drop down menu next to the word ‘Scripts’, select Tree.

The ‘Tree Pattern’ dialog box will now appear and gives you various ways the tree can be can customized.  From changing the direction of the light so shadows match the image to reducing or removing the leaves on the tree, this dialog box is where you would make those changes.  When you have made the necessary changes, click ‘OK’.

The tree will then be rendered and placed on your blank layer.  From this point the tree can be scaled and moved around the image.  It’s important to make sure the tree is placed on it’s own layer so you have the option to change the size and positioning of it later on if you need to. 

While I think it’s still necessary to have a large library of plant material images for anything your composite might need, this feature in Adobe Photoshop CC is really great and will help speed up the time it takes to make composite landscape images.

Lightroom 5 - Creating Metadata Presets

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Metadata Presets

Setting up a metadata preset in Adobe Lightroom 5 is not only a timesaver, but it allows you to easily apply additional metadata information to any image file.  What is metadata?  Metadata is all of the information associated with your photograph.  For example, shutter speed, aperture, ISO, location, capture date/time and more.  Creating a preset is easy and only takes a few steps. 

In the Library Module, select an image.  Look on the right hand side of the screen for a tab titled ‘Metadata’.  Expand the tab.  Here you see all of the information that is associated with your images.  Take a look through all of the fields and fill out the ones that you would like to apply to your images.  Generally, the metadata information that I add includes my name, address, email, website and copyright information.  Once you have your information filled out you are ready to save it as a preset. 

Go to the top of the Edit Metadata Presets dialog box you’ll see the word ‘Preset’.  Click the pulldown menu and select ‘save current settings as new preset…’.  Name the preset and click ok. 

Now your metadata preset is all set up and ready to be used.  You can apply the preset on your images as you import them into Lightroom or to images that are already in your Lightroom library.

Thanks for watching!

Lightroom 5 - Creating Import Presets

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Looking to speed up your Lightroom workflow?  Creating import presets is going to help you do that.  Import presets allow you to make all of the choices about how to import your images and where to store them and then save those settings as a preset.  Each time you import photos simply select your preset and all of your settings are applied automatically!  It’s a great time saver and prevents you from having to make all of the same choices and selections each time you import photos.   If you have any questions about setting up import presets in Adobe Lightroom, leave me a comment. 

Thanks for watching!

Gloomy Morning Photographs

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Foggy, wet, a little cool outside.  May not seem like ideal conditions to get out and shoot some photos, but I bet if you venture out you will find some interesting things.  That's exactly what I did late last week.  It was a cool, damp, foggy morning here in New Jersey.  As I looked at the fog in the morning light, I thought that there has to be some interesting images I could create.  So I ventured out in search of some interesting things to take pictures of.  

Below are a few of the images I captured during my 1 hour or so of being out and about.  All of the images are taking with the Canon 60D using an 18-135mm F3.5-5.6 IS lens.  Images were imported into Adobe Lightroom for cataloging and post processing.  Some of the images were then also brought into onOne's Perfect Effects for finishing touches.  

How often do you take photographs when the weather is less than ideal?

One Way to Become a Better Photographer

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Go out and take pictures!  That's right, the more you pick up your camera and go take pictures, the better a photographer you will become.  Like so many things in life, the art of photography requires practice.  There are many advantages to shooting more often.  Not only will you learn your camera better, you will also further develop your 'eye' for photographs.  Before you know it you will be 'seeing' photographs even when you don't have your camera with you.  Then again we all usually have our phones with us, so why not take the photograph you just saw with your phone?  Even on a rainy day like it was yesterday here in New Jersey, there's always something interesting to take pictures of.  Here is one of the shots I took today:  

Canon 60D  1/160th at F8.0, ISO 800, 135mm

Here are a few things that you can look for and think about in your daily travels to help develop your photographic eye:

  • Patterns
  • Textures
  • Lines
  • Diagonals
  • Shadows
  • Highlights
  • Filling the Frame
  • Framing the Subject
  • Forms
  • Shapes
  • Reflections
  • Colors or Lack of Color
  • Rule of Thirds
  • Leading Lines
  • Zoom in
  • Zoom in some more!
  • Go Wide Angle
  • Shallow Depth of Field

The best way to learn is to get out there any practice.  Play around with settings, angles, motion and depth of field.  You never know what you might create!

Getting Started in Lightroom 5

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Adobe Lightroom 5 Logo

Adobe Lightroom 5 Logo

Getting started in Adobe Lightroom can be a little intimidating.  When I first got started using Adobe Lightroom I remember thinking 'how am I going to figure all this out?'  I literally spent days researching, learning and sorting through all the information I could find to help me understand the program and how to use it.  Little by little I learned the program, how to use it, how to set it up and how to take advantage of the tools that are available to me.  By sharing my experience and knowledge of Adobe Lightroom, my hope is to help others just as I have been helped along the way.  

In my experience, there are no great 'secrets' to all of this stuff - its really just techniques, settings, styles, creativity, interpretations etc. that you may not have thought of or may not have learned yet.  I love to learn and I learn something new every day.  All the information that I plan to provide is the way I use Lightroom and what works for me.  I'm not saying this is the only way to do things, it's just what I found to work for me.  So, lets get started!

Adobe Lightroom 5 - File Locations

First Things First

I'm assuming that you have already installed Lightroom on your computer and are ready to go.  I use a Mac, so my setup will be based on the Mac system.  There are a few things you should know as you get started using Adobe Lightroom (Lightroom).  

  • Lightroom is a program that allows you to import, organize, manage, develop/process and export images.  It is a database for all of your images.
  • The more information you input about your images through metadata, ratings, keywords, etc. the better you will be able to search for specific images later on.
  • The Lightroom catalog houses all of the information related to your images - file locations, organizational structural, develop settings, ratings, keywords, etc.   
  • Image files are separate from the Lightroom catalog and can be stored in a different location than the Lightroom catalog file.  
  • Lightroom provides non-destructive editing of photos. 

With these few things in mind, we can get started on setting up Lightroom.  First, you want to think about where you would like to store your Lightroom catalog and where you would like to store your images.  

The Lightroom Catalog (.lrcat)

What I do and would recommend is to place the Lightroom catalog file (.lrcat file extension) on your local hard drive.  This will allow your computer to have the fastest access to the catalog.  Each time you load your catalog in Lightroom, all of the information contained in the catalog must be called up.  The quicker the computer can access the catalog file, the quicker Lightroom will be up and running.  I store my Lightroom catalog on my hard drive under Pictures>Lightroom>Focus Photography & Design>Learning Catalog_LR5.lrcat.  You can name your catalog anything you would like.  In this case, this will be the catalog I use for various tutorials, learning and teaching to help keep the program moving efficiently. 

Lightroom Catalog File Location

Image File Location

Next, think about where you want to store your image files.  If you will not have a lot of images or if you have a large internal hard drive, it might make sense to save the images on your internal hard drive.  I use an external hard drive to store my images.  I use a Drobo that contains 4 bays of hard drives.  The Drobo has been a great system for me that offers tons of storage and I would recommend them if you need a large external hard drive system.  

On my external hard drive I created a folder called 'Lightroom'.  Inside the 'Lightroom' folder, I created another folder called 'Photos Go Here'.  This will be the main location for all of the images.  It is important to keep all of your images inside one main (or parent) folder.  This method of storing your files will be helpful later on should you decide to move all of your image files within Lightroom.  

From this point forward, it is best to create your organizational system/file structure directly in Lightroom.  As you import your images into Lightroom, the Lightroom catalog creates a link to your images within the catalog.  The image files are not stored physically inside the catalog file, rather the catalog remembers where they are by saving a linked to them.  You never want to move the image files around in Finder or Windows Explorer because the link to the image in the Lightroom catalog will be 'broken'.  You will then need to 'relink' the file (you will see a little question mark in the top corner of the image preview letting you know that Lightroom can't find the file).  The best way to move and/or organize your images is directly in Lightroom.  By moving items in Lightroom, the Lightroom catalog will automatically update the links for the new image file location.

Inside your 'Photos Go Here' folder (or whatever the name you choose), you can then create any kind of organizational structure you'd like.  Below are the top level folders that I have created to organize my images:

Lightroom_JY Image Structure

I currently have my images broken down by year, then 7 primary categories.  Inside those 7 primary categories I have additional folders with specific events, places, etc.  I have a separate directory for iPad and iPhone images as well as a separate directory for all business/work related photography.  Inside the work folder, I further break it down into clients, projects, etc.  

This is the system that works for me, but it might not be the best for you.  Think about what you need and what you think will work for you.  I do find my organizational structure evolving over time, however with the setup I have, it is easy to move images and folders directly within Lightroom.  Keep in mind, the more images you have, the longer it will take to move them all around if you decide to change your organizational structure.  

I hope these basics help when getting started in Lightroom.  If you have any questions about the file locations and setting up a directory I'd be happy to help you further.  Please leave me a comment below.